Unexpected
by Psychodahlia
Summary: Ryoko finds an unexpected source of friendship and advice. Second chapter is now up, Kiyone and Kamidake talk.
1. Chapter 1

Ryoko took a small sip of her sake from the cup and let out a sigh. It

was hard to believe that it was over. That the man who had forced her

destruction of Jurai had been defeated was an overwhelming thought and

she had taken tonight, the first quiet night in what seemed an eternity,to get used to the idea that her tormentor was gone. The roof provided agreat view of the woods surrounding the house and shrine and the latehour kept the others from interrupting her.

The reformed space pirate slowly took another sip of her sake. Life had changed a lot in the past few days. The tender moments she had shared with Tenchi had led to quiet interludes where she didn't try to get into his pants and he didn't try and escape her company. Ryoko's part in Ayeka's rescue had also allowed both women an excuse to enjoy each other's companionship. Ayeka's guardians, now in the flesh, provided unexpected sources of friendship.

In fact, Ryoko almost choked on her drink when she looked up over the lawn to see a figure dressed in the pure white of the Jurain military uniform settled under a large pine tree. Downing the remainder of her cup, she picked up the sake bottle and flew down to investigate.

Azaka was in the lotus position, apparently meditating. Ryoko settled herself on a branch of a nearby tree and wondered how the man had maintained such flexibility into old age. She was certain the human body wasn't meant to bend that way and wondered if it hurt.

"You're out late, Miss Ryoko." The elderly knight said softly, startling her from her musings. "Is everything alright?"

Ryoko shook her head and flew down. Landing in front of him she put her hands on hips. "How did you know I was here?"

Azaka stretched out his legs and stood up. "It's amazing what you learn in the military. Any cadet would have been able to figure out you were there."

"Because I'm a demon?"

"Because the branch creaked under your weight. And I smelled your perfume." Azaka gave a small smile. "Now, how can I help you?"

"You smelled my perfume?" Ryoko gaped at him. The perfume had been a Christmas gift from Mihoshi for the household Secret Santa. She didn't think anybody would realize she was wearing it.

"Yes." They stared at each other for a moment before they both broke out laughing. His low chuckles were drowned out by her loud guffaws and neither of them knew what was so funny.

Ryoko took a swig from her sake bottle, not bothering to pour it in the cup. Drunkenly pointing to it she hiccupped. "This is why I'm out here."

"Ah."

"So why are you out so late? Don't you have to be all bright and cheery in order to serve her majesty?"

Azaka frowned slightly at the insult to Ayeka. "Miss Ryoko, please don't be rude."

Ryoko took another gulp. "Sorry." She muttered. They were both quiet for a few minutes, the only sounds being an owl hooting.

"This is a pretty planet." Azaka murmured. "I've always liked winter."

"Jurai has winters?" Ryoko asked.

"On the Southern Continent, winter is very mild. I got married in the winter."

"Did it snow?"

Azaka gave a small smile and shook his head. "No. It snowed the day after. My wife was very disappointed."

"That must've sucked." Ryoko sat down beneath the tree and held out the sake bottle. "Want some?"

"No thank you. I don't drink."

Ryoko shrugged and sipped the alcohol. "Why don't you drink?"

"Why do you drink?" Azaka countered. She paused in mid sip.

"'Cause I keep hoping Tenchi'll come out and join me." Ryoko put the bottle down and drew her knees up to her chest. "You didn't tell me what you were doing out here." She pointed out, changing the subject.

"I need a little peace and quiet at the end of the day. A man can only kill Mario so many times before he needs fresh air."

Ryoko laughed. "So I guess this means you won't be taking up DDR anytime soon."

Azaka laughed with her. "No, I think Final Fantasy is my limit."

They were both quiet for a while before Ryoko spoke again. "Hey, can I ask you something?"

"Yes."

"Why're you a knight? I mean, is serving Ayeka really all that great?"

"Service to the Royal Family is service to my homeland. Yes, is it a good job." He ran his hand through his short, grey beard and looked thoughtful. "Besides, the pay can't be beat and it comes with a great benefits package."

"You guys have some back pay from when you were logs don't you?"

"Yes."

"What'cha gonna do with it?"

"That's a very personal question, Ms. Ryoko." Azaka murmured softly. "And I hadn't actually thought about it."

"Sorry." Ryoko mumbled. "What d'you think Kamidake will do with it?"

Azaka snorted. "Cursed if I know. If he's smart he'll find a wife. Tsunami knows, he needs one."

"Oh yeah, someone who'll teach him how to cook. I mean, that spaghetti last night was pretty bad." Ryoko admitted.

"I tasted it. I told him he needed to start watching 'Iron Chef' instead of that 'Thirty Minute Cooking for Men' or whatever he's watching now." Azaka shook his head. "The man needs a wife."

"Yeah." Ryoko agreed. "What about you? You said you got married in the winter."

"She died of the flu." Azaka whispered. "Back then the medicine available wasn't so reliable."

Ryoko was sorry she brought it up. "Sorry."

"It was a long time ago. Long before we were put to sleep."

"And you never thought of remarrying?" She immediately wished she hadn't said that.

Azaka shrugged "No, I don't think I'll ever remarry. For one thing, women just don't interest me anymore."

The wind howled and crickets chirped while Ryoko stared. "Women…don't interest you?" She arched an eyebrow.

"I didn't mean like that! Goodness, Princess Ayeka is right, you do have a perverted mind." Azaka growled. Ryoko just laughed.

"Lighten up, old man! You have to admit what you said could be taken more than one way."

"You're still perverted for taking it like that." Azaka folded his arms and scowled. "And I'm not that old."

"Right." Ryoko said, grinning. "So, what did you mean?"

Azaka gave a defeated smile and leaned back against the tree. He picked up a piece of dark green straw and absently twirled it around his fingers. "I meant that Nonoko left an impression on me as the ideal woman. No female could ever live up to that and I don't intend on giving up that image. It would dishonor her memory to be with a woman who was less than she was."

They were both quiet for a moment before he spoke again. "Why do you wait for Lord Tenchi?"

Ryoko looked away. "Because when I go to him, he always tries to run away." When Azaka didn't say anything she spoke again. "He's the nicest guy I've ever met. He let me live here, he says nice things to me…" She trailed off and wiped her eyes. "Dammit, you've got me all worked up now."

"I apologize. You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to. I was just curious." Azaka dug into his shirt and produced a white handkerchief. "Here."

"Thanks." Ryoko mumbled, dragging the cloth across her eyes. "Guess we're both a little messed up in the love department, huh?"

"It would seem that way." The old knight agreed. "Although I could tell you a universal male secret if you'd like."

The demon grinned. "I gotta hear this."

"Men like sex…"

"That's it?" Ryoko stared. "No duh. You've been hanging around Ayeka for too long, you should tell that to her."

"You didn't let me finish." Azaka protested. "The truth is that men like sex, but we also like stability."

Ryoko still wasn't impressed. "So?"

"Sex is great but it can happen anytime, anywhere. If you're really desperate you can pay for it. Men want something that lasts longer and means more. We want stability." Azaka explained.

Ryoko looked at, finally comprehending what the old knight was saying. "So I should offer stability, not sex?"

"Well, sex is great too, but I think you might want to offer something more substantial along with it."

"Like what?"

"Well, a home maybe."

"I don't have a home to offer Tenchi." Ryoko reminded him. "He offered me his home."

"Happiness is good too." Azaka said. "The old proverb goes 'a woman who can provide happiness is a woman worth having'."

"That's a lame proverb." Ryoko growled. "You Jurains and your damn proverbs."

"The man who said that was one of the best writers the empire ever produced." Azaka shot back. "Madam, you have no appreciation for culture."

Ryoko snorted. For a few moments the only sound that could be heard was the wind and Azaka's light breathing.

"Does Ayeka know you're giving me love advice?" Ryoko asked humorously.

"No, she doesn't. But Tsunami knows it's an unfair competition. You need all the help you can get."

"I should blast you right back to Jurai." Ryoko snapped, knowing full well the man was teasing her.

"You go right ahead, Miss Ryoko." Azaka leaned against the pine tree and closed his eyes. "I'll just wait right here until you do that."

Ryoko chuckled and shook her head. Leaning back against the large pine, she inhaled the evergreen scent. "Hey, Azaka?"

"Hm?"

"Thanks."

"No problem, Miss Ryoko."

End

Author's notes- Everything belongs to Pioneer. I was just borrowing.

I had a couple of ideas for this little fanfic. First off I wanted to

give Azaka some characterization. He doesn't appear that often in

fanfics and that's too bad. He's got potential to be a really cool

character.

I also wanted Ryoko to actually have a friend. She's a bit of a longer

in the series and I wanted her to interact with someone who judge her

based on her past actions. Azaka knows about Kagato so he would also

know she wasn't responsible.

Finally, I wanted two people, a man and a woman, to sit down and have a

conversation without there being any romance. I hope I achieved that. Comments, questions and reviews are welcome.


	2. Chapter 2

Sometimes, a woman can't help but compare herself to others. Women seem to be in a constant state of competition with each other, even when they don't mean to be. It is natural for every woman to feel inadequate about herself at some point in time.

For Kiyone, that point came one mild winter day in early March. The sun was shining for the first time in days and the mud had just begun to harden. Having finished her day job of working at WacDonald's in order to pay the rent on the apartment she shared with Mihoshi, she had arrived at Tenchi's house with the intent of stealing a little relaxation. She had eased herself into a lawn chair around noon and had unintentionally fallen asleep. She'd woken up a few hours later to the sun shining directly in her eyes and the temperature considerably lower. Her skin had dried out from the cold and the rough sweater she was wearing and the result was she ended up feeling grouchy and unattractive. Not a good combination.

Drawing her knees up to her chest, the green-haired cop silently mused on how she envied Washu's baby-soft skin. Before she knew it, Kiyone was close to tears wishing she was as tall and thin as Mihoshi, as graceful as Ayeka, as voluptuous as Ryoko, and as cute as Sasami. She didn't normally angst like this, and certainly not over something as trivial as outward appearances, but every now and then her plainness really stuck out. The other girls would be in a bathing suit contest and be hailed as pretty, charming, elegant. She would be acknowledged as one of the working class, given sympathy points for her sunburn.

Kiyone's self-effacing musings were interrupted by the sound of the back door sliding open and shut and someone's feet softly slapping against the dried mud and grass. Lifting her head she saw Ayeka's knight setting a laundry basket down on the grass by the clothesline. It was an oddly comical scene of a military-robed man doing laundry and Kiyone permitted herself a smile. "Hey, Kamidake!"

He looked up. "Good afternoon, Miss Kiyone." He smiled back at her.

"Ayeka making you do laundry?"

He gave a nervous laugh and shook his head. "Actually…Mr. Masaki suggested I do this instead of cooking. Seems we're out of fire extinguishers…" He trailed off and she could have sworn he was blushing. "Anyway, what brings you out here?"

"Nothing." Kiyone shrugged. "Just enjoying the peace and quiet."

"Am I bothering you?"

"No!" Kiyone shook her head. "No, I'm just out…here." She waved her hand around, gesturing around the yard.

"Oh." Kamidake nodded and went about hanging the sheets on the line. Kiyone watched him for a minute.

"Hey, Kamidake?" She asked quietly. "Can I ask you something?"

He paused and turned towards her, clothespin in his mouth while he used both hands to hang Sasami's yellow tank on the line. "Thure."

Kiyone frowned. "You mean 'sure', right?" Kamidake nodded. "Just checking. You should know it's kind of personal though."

Kamidake looked slightly surprised and took the clothespin out of his mouth. "Okay…I suppose." He shrugged.

"Okay." Kiyone took a deep breath and prepared herself. "What's with your hair?"

Somewhere in the background a cricket chirped and neither one said anything for a moment. Suddenly, Kamidake took the clothespin out of his mouth and started laughing.

Kiyone scowled, the man's laughter adding to the feeling that she wasn't good enough, pretty enough, smart enough. Grumbling, she forced herself up from the lawn chair and started making her way towards the house. She only managed a few steps before Kamidake lightly touched her arm to stop her.

"I'm sorry…" He tried to catch his breath. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to laugh at you. I thought you were going to ask me something personal something. I mean, nobody's ever asked about my hair." He was clearly trying not to laugh at her again.

Kiyone nodded. "I didn't mean to overreact." They both stood there for a few moments before Kamidake offered to sit with her after he was finished hanging up the laundry. She agreed and a few moments later they were both sitting on the steps leading to the shrine.

"You still haven't answered my question." Kiyone pointed out.

Kamidake shrugged. "It's just a culture thing."

"Culture thing?"

"I'm Eastern." He said that as if it explained everything.

Kiyone stared. "What does that mean?"

"Oh…um…" Kamidake leaned his head back and thought for a minute. "I'm from the Eastern continent on Jurai. It's kind of conservative, or it was back when, and men and women wear their hair elaborately. It's a sign of self-respect and respect of others. You care enough about your appearance and how you appear to others to take care of yourself."

"This is done of the Eastern continent?" Kiyone asked.

"It's done pretty much everywhere in the Jurain Empire. Or it was at any rate. It's just that the further East you go from the more conservative everybody is." He shrugged. "It's probably different now. It's been a long time since I've been home, maybe it's more liberal now." He became quiet.

Kiyone leaned back on her elbows and looked up at the overcast sky. "It's been a while since I've been home too. The Galaxy Police haven't given me a vacation in years." She glanced up at him. "Hey…"

"Yes?"

"Can I ask you a personal question?"

Kamidake looked amused. "You already asked me about my hair."

"You're a laugh a minute." Kiyone responded dryly. "Can I ask you or not?"

"Ask me whatever you want." Kamidake shrugged.

"Do you ever wish you'd done something different? Like, had a family? Or not focused so much on your career?"

"Sometimes. But being a knight isn't exactly family friendly. I mean, Azaka went on duty for a few weeks and went back to find his wife dead. But I never really wanted to play house or get married or any of that anyway so…" He trailed off. "It doesn't really matter."

One delicately shaped eyebrow arched. "True, but doesn't having to sacrifice so much sometimes bug you?"

"Sometimes."

Kiyone lifted her arms and stretched. "It annoys me. I mean, just being Mihoshi's partner is a sacrifice!"

Kamidake gave a low laugh. "She's not that bad, is she?"

Kiyone looked shocked at the idea that someone would suggest anything other than that Mihoshi was the worst waste of carbon in the galaxy. "You've got to be kidding me! The woman is a lunatic and my personal bad luck charm. Everything bad that ever happened to me was her fault in some way or another."

It was Kamidake's turn to arch his eyebrow. "Wow."

"Wow? Wow doesn't begin to cover it, she almost ruined my career! Even now, I'm still stuck coming to this backwater solar system to fix up her messes." Kiyone was scowling now, her face twisted in anger as she thought of her stereotypically blond partner. "Everything is her fault!"

"Wow." Kamidake said again. "That's a lot to blame someone for."

She stared at him for a minute before sighing and leaning against the staircase. "It sounds like I hate her, doesn't it?"

"Well…"

"I don't." Kiyone said quietly. "She is a lunatic and she does have a better figure than I do, and she falls asleep all the time, but…" she took a deep breath, "I don't hate her."

"I'm sure she'd like to know that." Kamidake commented. He stood up and stretched. "I should go back inside. I'm sure by now Azaka's lost count of how many times he's lost that video game." He offered her a hand and pulled her up.

Kiyone eyed his uniform critically. "How do you two keep those uniforms so clean? I mean, they're white!" She gestured towards the unstained garments.

"Jurai power. Keeps your whites white and your brights bright." For the first time all day, she laughed. He smiled when she did. "You should laugh more. You look pretty when you do."

End.

Author's notes- This is my favorite couple in Tenchi Universe now.

I was originally gonna do this the same way I did the Azaka and Ryoko interaction. Then I realized these were two different characters who would have very different problems and reactions. So in respect to that, I tuned in a little more to their psyches instead of their reactions to the physical world around them.

Kiyone and Kamidake are both career driven and lonely. She's stationed out in the middle of no where, he's been dead for God-knows-how-long. They're roughly the same age, they can relate to each other.

Throughout the Universe series Kiyone is shown washing dishes while the other girls act as hostesses, working while the other girls eat flavored ice, and having a sunburn at a swimsuit contest. That's enough to make any woman insecure, even if she's not normally vain.

It took me months to finish this. Stupid college, taking up my time with all that studying and learning.

The characters all belong to Pioneer. The fic is mine. Please forgive any errors.


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